I'm the Queen of crap swimmers! I can swim for a long way, but only slowly. Took my IM swim PB down this year from 2hrs 09 to 1hr 52, still very slow compared to most others. The Mr. can do it in 1hr 08, makes me sick!My 1000m best is 26mins. Everyone else in the world seems to be able to swim 20 or less.

Please can I join in - I'm currently trying to learn front crawl. I can just swim whole lengths but have to have a massive rest before I can swim the next one. I am also v.v.slow: last time I swam I was overtaken by a women swimming breast stroke with her head out of the water wearing glasses. However (hard as it is to believe) I have improved a lot as I couldn't manage more than a third of a length a couple of months ago. I think I need to increase the frequency of my training to see any improvement now ie. go more than once a week.So do I qualify for Queen of Crap swimmers??

I am also learning to swim at the moment, & I can honestly echo everything you have said, especially how tiring it is? My instructor says that as my technique improves (with practice), then my swimming action will become more efficient and require less effort. I really hope she is right, 'cause at the moment I find that marathon running is far less exhausting for me than swimming one 20m length! And that's my limit at the moment. Does this make me the king of crap swimmers??

I've often heard many competent swimmers say that they "swim for relaxation". Well, from where I am at the moment, I really fail to see how that can be possible!

I think I've made some progress though - before my lessons started (14 weeks ago) I wouldn't even get in the pool! (My dad threw me in the deep end when I was young - nearly drowned & had to be rescued)!

Good luck with your efforts......I fully appreciate how difficult learning to swim is........!

TTT - when I was at school we had a very scary teacher for swimming, who used to shout, and I mean *shout*. My memory of swimming lessons is her walking up and down the pool with a broom handle waiting for you to stop swimming your length, so she could get some more shouting in again!

Lucky enough that my local swimming club has a coach that will teach TI to triathletes at £17 for 10 sessions. Was just getting the hang of it before we started a 3 week summer break. Have tried doing the drills on my own in local swimming pool, but invariably it ends up going wrong.

Looking forward to getting my front crawl together for next tri season.

Stop this thread I want to get on! Didn't I sow the idea of this in the first place, and now it's page 3?

We have just been away for a few days, and took the kids to the local baths for a family swim. The Mrs (bless her) knocked out half a mile in 20 minutes, she usually does a mile at the same pace, but the place was heaving. Then it was my turn to have a go at swimming instead of standing & watching.

My target was 400m against the clock. OK so I kicked a couple of oiks in the process, but I did manage one and a half lengths of crawl, the rest in breast. 12 minutes and I was creamed.

Am a one stroke swimmer myself, can do breaststroke OK but half-drown whenever I attempt freestyle. I am wondering whether to ask for some lessons for my birthday, but not sure how good the lessons at the gym would be. I can do a mile breaststroke in about 45 minutes, is this very slow? Really not sure, I overtake a fair few people, but not many of them are doing freestyle.

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